Introducing a stress-free Elizabeth...

So basically Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty shithouse days (mom, I can say that because it's an Aussie phrase... I'm embracing the culture) Between Extension English, Presentation Night, and a couple Weyburn things I was pretty much stressed to the point of tears. However, last night and today made me a very happy person.

Presentation night went really well. There were only a few things like the gallery lights and a curtain issue that went wrong, but it was nothing major and I'm ecstatic. The principal's speech was 12 minutes, but the night was still kept to under 2 hours. Then Simon drove me home and didn't kill me, so yay for that. (On that note, congrats to Simon about the Ps...but I still miss driving) So basically with the conclusion of Presentation Night, Presentation night stress went away.

Then when I got home I had four excellently timed e-mails from Weyburn and thus all that stress was gone.

Then this morning in Extension Nesbitt told me that he actually liked what I had written (which is amazing, I thought it was crap) so now half of my extension stress in gone (still seminar stress, but I'm not worried about that yet)

So basically yeah, I am one extremely happy person at the moment.

And I could be getting even happier. In Entertainment people get to do work experience. At first I was told I couldn't because I'm not technically enrolled in the course. Now Ms. Mullen is my personal hero because there is a slight possibility that I will be able to. Basically Rotary has said yes, providing it's nothing too dangerous and we just have to check on some insurance things and then actually find a placement, but YAY!!! (I really shouldn't be this excited about work placement, should I?)

Quote of the day is from "Sin City" which was a good movie, but really, really gory: "And after I pull off that miracle I'll go punch out God."

E(Liz)abeth :)

My post script: No cockroaches in my house that I've seen for 2 days so that's also a great source of happiness!

Umina Weekend...

First of all yay for me being in Australia for seven months and one day. My God I've been here a long time. And also yay for me figuring out how to post more than just five pictures.

So this weekend was our Umina Weekend. Gotta love all the exchangies in one place. I don't know why these Aussies keep complaining about droughts though and as we got a pretty good rain Saturday night and then all day today. It was still an amazing weekend though (was there ever any doubt?)


Sexy feet
at the
bush dance
on Saturday
night.












Canadian
contigent













The gum
tree dance.
Everyone
has attractive
hats on.










Challenge
ranch (girls
rocked out)











Reptile

park.
















The Friday
night party
people
(some day
I'll learn
to take my
swimmers)








Group shot
at Reptile
Park.











Pepsi
Max ad
just for
Ed.












What we
did to Kirk
when it was
raining.










Train ride
home (poor

other people
on the train)









So yes, fantastic weekend. Highlights include buying Tim Tams and hot chocolate, coming second in the scavenger hunt (though I'm sure those German speakers totally cheated), doing the Nut Bush, the Virginia Reel, the Matila Waltz, and various other choreographed dance, swimming in my clothes, Johnny's underwater beat-boxing, getting attacked by emus, gaining a new nickname, scaring the people away from us on the train platform, and cramming onto the train. And the greatest thing? Only six days until we all see each other again. How good is that? There may be one low light which involves my phone being commandeered for the entire weekend, but I'll let you know about that one.

Quote of the day: "Who wouldn't want to get a hickey from Rasmus?"

E(Liz)abeth :)

Cards Night, Jerseys, and *Gasp* Elizabeth in a Dress...

Yay for pictures!!! The only thing is that mom and dad are in Minneapolis and therefore I'm not sure how much access they'll actually have to them.

First of all, cards night. Can I just say that 28 of a kind Go Fish might seem like a really brilliant idea, but on actual execution, it's not so great. But we totally finished and there will forever be a grudge against Sam for taking the eights out of the family.
















Result of a card fight. Surprisingly there was only one casualty and now we have a deck for 500.















What all the cool exchange students are doing at 930 on a Saturday night.

We got our year 12 jerseys last week. Weyburn people, think Grad bunnyhugs but you have to wear them every day as a part of your uniform. They are really good because they knock the year 11s down a peg. It really is a statement of power. Mine's a little bit too big now but meh, it's still pretty sweet.




















Front (says "Moose" under Carlingford Crest)




















Back (my favourite one so far is Anders' which says "Double"... it makes sense)

And here it is Canadadians, the thing that made jaws drop and people become speechless, me in a dress. Really, not a big deal.




















I totally got my dinner badge for Rotary yesterday. It was really exciting!!!

Tonight was music orientation and because I have no life I went and helped out with lights and sound. It wasn't even my fault when the board stuffed up. It might have something to do with the fact that the lighting desk is from 1993. And radios are fun.

Umina weekend this weekend. Woot for the exchangies. I really need to find out which exchangies I am staying with, if I'm staying with one at all.... but I don't think they'd put us somewhere alone.

People from school and Rotary have recently started full-naming me. I feel as though mom might be behind this somehow.

Every day in every way I'm becoming more and more addicted to "Chaser's War on Everything" I mean c'mon "Scenes of the Life of the Big Warehouse guy"? Amazing. And thus my quote: "He's so dodgy he's actually warping the space time continuum." (There's a better one, but nothing I can type on this blog that my parents and/or Rotarians read)

E(Liz)abeth :)

Happy Birthday Sode!!!...

I would first like to just say that I'm very glad I am still in the will. But that also might be more motivation for Rob and Ed to knock me off.

This week was the longest week in the history of weeks, between English-both Extension and otherwise- and... actually English was the only reason this week wasn't so awesome on the school front. But atleast it ended on a high note with extreme hyperness in drama yesterday. Ms. Mullen was a little bit scared of us.

Ellie and I discovered that we can actually be friends due to our mutual hate of Simon (it was mutual love but then he stuffed it up)

I got word from Candace. She is coming on May 5th. That means I'll finally get to go to Luna Park and Targona Zoo!!!!

We got our jerseys! Yay for wearing down the head teachers to stop caring if we actually wear them!

The real purpose of this post is the say Happy Birthday to Sode (today in Australia, tomorrow in Canadia)
So I found this picture of us from Grad. We've both changed some. Sarah's hair is no longer reddish, blackish, etc (well actually it might be again, but at Christmas it was blond-ish) and my hair has apparently grown quite a bit (well y'know, that plus the tattoos and various facial piercings) But this picture is just to honour our awesome-ness and Sarah's EXTREME awesome-ness because she is now officially legal to do anything in Saskatchewan.




















So today there are several quotes all of which Sarah should understand:
"Diggering... crap, diggering... dammit- digging!"
"Man, those were funny." "Yeah, but there weren't any-" "What?" "Paintbrushes."
"Yeah, but you and I don't make-out on a regular basis." "Well we would if you weren't such a prude."

I'll leave it up to people to decide which sides of the conversation were me and which were Sode.
Cards night tonight :D

E(Liz)abeth :)

2 Exchangie Days + 1 Carlo day = One hell of a weekend...

My God I had a fantastic weekend. I was really mad that I had to miss "On Stage" to go to this Rotary dinner but in my anger I forgot about the fact that all the exchangies would be there. We had a great time!!!!! My speech went excellent-ly. I also got an idea from a rebounder that went to Finland. Basically I need to make my friends so depressed about me leaving that they'll pack my bags for me.






Senni and Hilda









I know it's
blurry but
I can't do
anything
about it...
and it's funny
'cause Moritz
tucked his
shirt in.






Host sis Jaq
Host dad Pete
Me











Then after the dinner a bunch of us exchangies and rebounders hung out for a while. It was quite a bit of fun.

Then Saturday Lisel's BBQ part II. There were no baseball conversations this time but rather plans to go scrounging with Ed in G-wood at some point, failed card tricks, and many a games of 500.




A good pic
taken by
Nick I would
assume... or
maybe V herself









Ed and Erin












Today was our sailing day out in Newport. And guess who's boat won? That's right, the one that I happened to be on (along with Maggie and Ermo) I didn't take any pictures though because I was terrified my camera would go overboard. But atleast I got to sail. Kirk had a $70 cab ride from Wynyard, got there, didn't get to go on a sailboat and then on top of it all didn't get ice cream in a cone, but in a bowl. Poor Kirk had a tough day.

Today's quote if from "Mock the Week" which is the reason I'm becoming addicted to YouTube. Basically it's kinda "Whose Line?"-esque but British and current affairs. "Our only hope is that the enemy kills so many of us they become slightly depressed."

I was reading my old blog posts and my journal last night and I think I sounded really immature. Thus taking a page from Simon's book I am posing a question today: Have I changed since coming to Australia? Deep and philosophical... or shallow, whatever.

E(Liz)abeth

Leo's goodbye...

So on Friday I moved to Oatlands. I have to say, I really love my new host family (not that I didn't love the others) I have 6 new siblings, only three of which live at home. Jacquie is 19, Colin is 17 and Dave is 21. It's good having people around my own age and Jaquie just got back from Denmark on her exchange so she understands what I'm doing. The public transport kinda sucks out here, but really it's only two months. And I guess I am near the Carlingford line can you say score?

Eugene's party on Saturday was fun. However I can say as a teenager that the music was a little loud. I mean, you could literally feel it in your soul (or stomach, which ever)

Then on Sunday Leo went home. Basically we got to the airport super early and hung around just saying goodbye. Once again the Carlos and the exchangies mixed. We gave Leo the best send-off. It included a conga line to Leo's gate that amused security and then we lined up on either side of the gate and screamed the loudest "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi, Oi, Oi!" that the airport's probably ever heard. And Rasmus was right, the accoustics were perfect for it. It was good way to send Leo off just because Leo was always smiling so if we'd all been falling apart it would've just felt wrong. I did cry because yes, it is true that Leo will be back and it is also true that I will be back but the chances are practically zero that we'll be back at the same time.

(Leo's goodbye party)














(Leo on the frog)














(Kirk and Stefan being...um... nevermind)



















(Toblerone: bought by Simon. Eaten by the exchangies)













(Leo and I... isn't his shirt the best?)












And can I ask people to stop hitting on Braydon. It will just go to his head.

Today's quote is in honour of the amount of "Gilmore Girls" I've been watching lately: "Wow, aren't we hooked on Phonics?"

E(Liz)abeth :)